Quinoa Cakes with Eggplant-Tomato Ragù and Smoked Mozzarella Reviews

Food editor Lillian Chou, who is also gourmet's resident runner of marathons, swears by quinoa: "I have so much more energy if I eat it before a race!" And transforming this power grain into crisp cakes topped with a substantial rustic sauce and gooey softened mozzarella creates another compelling reason to love itit just tastes so good.

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users rating3.5/4

The cakes themselves are a bit tasteless but the ragu MORE than makes up for it. Think of them as a vessel for the great sauce. The trick I found to keeping the cakes together was to BAKE them before frying them. I increased the eggs by 1.5x, added a few breadcrumbs, put them in the fridge for 15 minutes (probably not needed) and then baked the at 350 for 15 mins. I took them out of the oven and fried them up. Not one fell apart. Next time I'll probably save the calories and just put them under the broiler the crisp the tops....I don't think frying them added much flavor--just a nice crunch.

The cakes themselves are a bit tasteless but the ragu MORE than makes up for it. Think of them as a vessel for the great sauce. The trick I found to keeping the cakes together was to BAKE them before frying them. I increased the eggs by 1.5x, added a few breadcrumbs, put them in the fridge for 15 minutes (probably not needed) and then baked the at 350 for 15 mins. I took them out of the oven and fried them up. Not one fell apart. Next time I'll probably save the calories and just put them under the broiler the crisp the tops....I don't think frying them added much flavor--just a nice crunch.

The cakes themselves are a bit tasteless but the ragu MORE than makes up for it. Think of them as a vessel for the great sauce. The trick I found to keeping the cakes together was to BAKE them before frying them. I increased the eggs by 1.5x, added a few breadcrumbs, put them in the fridge for 15 minutes (probably not needed) and then baked the at 350 for 15 mins. I took them out of the oven and fried them up. Not one fell apart. Next time I'll probably save the calories and just put them under the broiler the crisp the tops....I don't think frying them added much flavor--just a nice crunch.

After I made this, everyone raved about it! I made it vegetarian & left out the cheese, though. Surprisingly, it was still delicious. Since I am always short on time & probably lazy, I did not squeeze out the liquid from the 2 eggplants/aubergines, just cutting them into small cubes & adding to the cooking pan after the 2 onions & 5 garlic cloves were golden. (Love garlic! But the quantity of all veggies together meant that their taste did not dominate.)
I used char-grilled peppers from 2 medium jars (draining them of oil first) & two tins of tomatoes (one with herbs, one of cherry tomatoes, including all liquid), again to make life easier & it was perfect. For so few ingredients, the ragu was fantastic. I did add a bit of Italian spice mix instead of just salt, as two large aubergines made the mix a little bland when I test-tasted & added only enough water to rinse the tomato tins.
It was the first time I made quinoa and I was worrid that the patties would be plain, so I added lots of chopped, small-leaf parsley to the cooked quinoa & used 3 eggs to bid the patties better.
Panko breadcrubs were sprinkled on the top & the patties were dipped in a tray of breadcrumbs for the other side but by the last few I had run out, however the patties still held and really firmed up whilst cooking. They did take a while though, on medium heat, browning nicely. I used my hands to make balls (which were prone to falling apart, though), flattening them when in the pan. Clearly, the eggs worked.
No-one could believe that red quinoa tasted so good with just eggs, a little S&P & parsley! A real nutty flavour - so glad we didn't complicate them with extra ingredients. We are going to use them for vegetarian-patty burgers next.
Apart from the chopping & waiting for the quinoa to cook (which we did the previous day which meant we started with cold & never had to cool the patties), a fast easy dish. Such a great recipe!

I've made this recipe a couple of times but never with fresh eggplants or tomatoes. I use frozen oven dried eggplants and canned roma tomatoes. I use some chicken broth to reconstitute the eggplant in the sauce and I used a frozen roasted pepper. I think it is better to let the mozzarella in the sauce almost completely melt and to put a couple of slice of the cheese on top of the cakes to melt before putting on the sauce. A great winter dish with stuff from the freezer and canned.

I didn't let the quinoa cook to the point of being bone-dry and I think that may have helped them stick together. I believe I would have been okay with one egg that way, but I went ahead and added the second egg per the other reviews. They fell apart. Many reviews commented the quinoa cakes were bland, but I loved the little parts that broke off and cooked really crispy. So good!
The only change I made to the Ragu was to roast my own peppers. I was also able to do much of the recipe ahead of time and simply combine everything and cook right before dinner. I put that I will make this recipe again, but I really mean I will keep the recipe around and if someone else in this house liked it well enough, they can make it. It's a bit labour intensive.

The quinoa cakes (used two eggs, parmesan and plenty of salt and pepper) were ok--my husband liked them. I thought they were dry. The eggplant ragu was divine--better, I think, than classic ratatouille. I used a big onion, two garlic cloves, one half-red jalapeno from the late garden, one half-red sweet pepper from the same source, and Fox heirloom tomatoes--bigger than cherry, smaller than slicers. Also white eggplant, which I grown because their skins are thinner. With artisanal, non-smoked mozzarella, I could have eaten it all myself. Next time I think I'll follow a suggestion below and try the ragu with polenta or a tender pasta.

have not written a review in a while but I had to for this.
was looking for an eggplant main course other than my usual Indian and this hit the spot. great taste and easy. did not do the quinoa cakes but served it with polenta, which was perfect to complete the comfort food feeling. I did skip on the red pepper (allergy), subbed heirloom tomatoes for the cherry ones and regular mozzarella instead of smoked as I am not a fan of smokey flavors. I think the garlic is key in this recipe. do not cut down. It is also versatile, can add other veggies and hot pepper flakes for some punch.